St. Hope Band 3
Sac High Alumni Spotlight: Frances Harris, Class of 2007
Frances Harris started Sac High in 2003 as a freshman and was part of the first class that graduated from Sac High as a public charter school. She is a second-generation Sac High student and lived right down the street from the school. Throughout her four years of high school, Frances was very involved in school activities and played basketball and soccer.
Daughter of Legend Muhammad Ali, visited 40 Acres Complex
Maryum Ali, the eldest of Muhammad Ali’s nine children, recently held a book signing at the historic Guild and Underground Books to celebrate the 20th Anniversary edition of her children’s book, I Shook Up the World: The Incredible Life of Muhammad Ali. Through her book, Maryum seeks to introduce children to one of the greatest sports legends and most admired men of all time, Muhammad Ali.
Sac High Hosts International Teachers as Part of CSU, Chico’s Fulbright Program
We are delighted to continue our partnership with California State University, Chico’s Fulbright Teaching Excellence and Achievement (FTEA) Program. We recently hosted 19 teachers from countries across the world including Armenia, Bangladesh, Uzbekistan, El Salvador, Burma, and Kenya at Sac High so they could learn about U.S. practices in teaching methodologies, lesson planning, service learning, and the use of technology in the classroom.
Two Sac High Scholar-Athletes Sign College Letters of Intent
We are thrilled that two of our Sac High Seniors, Kendahl Hearne and Lamar Radcliffe, committed to colleges for football and signed their letters of intent on national Signing Day. Kendahl signed with Cornell University where he plans to major in creative writing and Lamar committed to San Jose State University where he plans to major in kinesiology.
Celebrating Black History Month
President's Message - 2.26.24
This month, we have been fully immersed in learning about and celebrating Black history. Not only are we focused on learning from the past we are focused on seizing future opportunities and building our next generation of leaders.
‘Black history is not just February’: Art & Soul in Sacramento offers healing and education through painting
2.19.24
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Carla Wells uses art to heal. She’s the founder of Art & Soul in Sacramento. Art & Soul holds all types of interactive art events like paint and sips, paint and plays, and paint and healing retreats.
“We can process pain through paint,” Wells said. “It’s creative expression in its fullness. It’s coming from the inside and it’s put onto canvas. Art & Soul serves men, women, children and families through creative process and creative play.”
Sacramento High blasts rival Christian Brothers to win back-to-back section championships
2.22.24
Twice, the Sacramento Dragons could have watched their basketball season unravel since their last visit here.
There was an abrupt coaching change just before the start of fall practices, and then there was a lull in effort and production late in the Capital Athletic League season, resulting in three losses to teams motivated to douse the Dragons return run to a championship. But on Wednesday afternoon at Golden 1 Center, the storied Dragons of Oak Park buried all of that old residue for good.
Living history and legacies: Teaching Black history in Sacramento classrooms
2.21.24
It’s Black History Month and schools, like Sacramento Charter High School, are shaping their curriculum to include the rich Black history of Sacramento.
And Cassandra Jennings, the Chief Executive Officer of St. HOPE Charter Schools, reminds students at Sacramento Charter High School of exactly that.
“The history goes even further than what you’re reading in the books. We got our own history right here,” she told the seniors in her advisory class.
Sac High Alumni Spotlight: Janera Whitney, Class of 2012
Throughout her time at Sac High, Janera Whitney (maiden name Montano) was very active and took advantage of all that Sac High had to offer. She was involved in Yearbook all four years, helped put on a shoe drive to support Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, and joined the softball team. She also attended school board meetings to advocate for charter renewal, was involved in community improvement campaigns, and participated in internships.
Black History Month Play Showcases Mental Health Struggles Women Face
St. HOPE is pleased to partner with Celebration Arts to present the play For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf at the historic Guild Theater. Directed by the visionary Voress Franklin, this iconic choreopoem is a profound exploration of racism, oppression, and sexism. The production weaves the tales of seven women through poetry, music, and dance, delivering a powerful narrative filled with passion and raw honesty.
Sac High Partnership with MADE Provides Scholars with Unique Hands-on Learning Opportunity
Sac High recently established a partnership with MADE to provide scholars with an opportunity to learn how to use design programs and tools to create artistic projects. Scholars come to the creative community workspace located in Oak Park one day a week after school. They receive hands-on instruction and have access to graphic design programs and tools to create stickers, wood engraving, 3D printing projects, and more.
PS7 Elementary School Modernization Installs New Classrooms
The construction teams have been hard at work on our PS7 campus renovation project since July 2023 and we are thrilled that the project is on schedule. Crews have been busy clearing land, pouring concrete, preparing building foundations, and installing new water, sewer and power lines that will serve the new facilities. They have paved the future basketball courts and new front parking lots, and began building the new campus fence.
Celebration Arts to Present FOR COLORED GIRLS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED SUICIDE / WHEN THE RAINBOW IS ENUF
January 3, 2024
Directed by the visionary Voress Franklin, this iconic choreopoem will grace the stage at the historic Guild Theater from February 2nd to 25th, marking the second year of a decade-long partnership with St. HOPE.
Supporting Winning Teams
Message from the CEO - 11.28.23
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. As I think about winning teams, I’m grateful for your support and generosity as we collectively work to uplift the Oak Park and greater Sacramento community. Speaking of winning teams, I’d like to give a shout out to our Sac High football team who came back from a slow start to make it to the second round of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Playoffs. I commend them for not giving up and making the necessary changes to finish strong. We should never count the Sac High Dragons out. Let’s go Dragons!
Join Us for Christmas in Oak Park to Celebrate the Holiday Season!
We are hosting our annual Christmas in Oak Park, a multicultural community celebration with activities for kids and people of all ages. Located at the 40 Acres Complex, a historic cultural gathering place, this fun and festive event is a great way to kick off the holiday season.
Jada Pinkett Smith Book Tour is Coming to Underground Books
We hope that you can join us for an exciting in-person event as we welcome Jada Pinkett Smith as she comes to Sacramento on her book tour. Jada’s new unconventional memoir Worthy is an invitation to join her adventure in search of love and self-worth. During this special event, Jada will recount her story in an intimate conversation with readers.
Sac High Senior Micah Holmes Leading by Example
Earlier this month, Micah Holmes, a Sac High senior, presented at the City Parks and Community Enrichment Commission where he told Commissioners how much he has benefited from participating in the City’s youth workforce development Landscape & Learning (L&L) program. Micah started as an intern in the L&L program in summer 2022 where he has worked in community parks and green spaces weeding, pruning, and providing general park maintenance and clean up.
To make dual enrollment more equitable, bring the college experience to high school
October 24, 2023
College enrollment was declining even before the pandemic. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, “the overall college enrollment rate for 18- to 24-year-olds decreased from 41% in 2010 to 38% in 2021.” In 2021, the college enrollment rate for 18- to 24-year-olds was highest for Asian students (60%) compared to 37% for Black students and 33% for Hispanic students.
Colour of Music Festival Returns to Sacramento
We are thrilled that on its 10th anniversary, the Colour of Music Festival is returning to Sacramento from November 6-11. This music festival shines an important light on underrepresented composers, musicians, vocalists, and other black artists. There are thousands of celebrated and prodigiously talented classical principals, composers and performers of African descent throughout the world. Yet, their opportunities to grace concert stages of major American orchestras are often or non-existent.